Aged Care

Aged Care services in Australia are delivered through three main programmes:

Commonwealth Home Support Programme

On 1 July 2015, the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) was implemented..

The CHSP will consolidate four aged care programmes – the Commonwealth Home and Community Care (HACC) Program, planned respite from the National Respite for Carers Program (NRCP), the Day Therapy Centres (DTC) Program and the Assistance with Care and Housing for the Aged (ACHA) Program.

Home Care Packages

A Home Care Package is a coordinated package of services tailored to meet the consumer’s specific care needs. The package is coordinated by an approved home care provider, with funding provided by the Australian Government under the Aged Care Act 1997.

There are four levels of Home Care Packages:

Home Care Level 1 – to support people with basic care needs

Home Care Level 2 – to support people with low level care needs

Home Care Level 3 – to support people with intermediate care needs

Home Care Level 4 – to support people with high care needs

A range of services can be provided under a Home Care Package, including care services, support services, clinical services and other services to support a person living at home. All Home Care Packages must be delivered on a Consumer Directed Care basis (CDC). CDC is a way of delivering services that allows consumers to have greater flexibility and control over their own lives by allowing them to make choices about the types of care and services they access and the delivery of those services, including who will deliver the services and when.

Residential Care

Residential aged care in Australia is subsidised by the Commonwealth Government and is governed by the Aged Care Act 1997 (the Act).

Residential aged care provides a range of care options and accommodation for older people who are unable to continue living independently in their own homes. The type of care provided ranges from personal care to assist with activities of daily living through to nursing care on a 24-hour basis.

The Department of Social Services plays a vital role in developing policies, managing programmes and providing regulatory services to improve the quality of residential aged care in Australia.

To enter Australian Government subsidised residential care, a person must first be approved as a care recipient. In order to determine a person’s eligibility and care needs, an Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) assessment must be undertaken.

My Aged Care

Aged Care Services are accessed by contacting My Aged Care – an Australian government website and national phone line that assists people to navigate the aged care system and provides referrals for assessment and services.

My Aged Care provides:

Referrals for assessment and service provision;

Up-to-date information on Commonwealth funded aged care services in each local area;

Information about aged care fees and charges;

Support for people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse communities;

Information about healthy and active living; and

Information about carer support services.

HomeCareToday website has now closed. All resources will be moved to the COTA Australia website in the near future.

The Australian Government is working with the Aged Care Sector and consumers to ensure that there will be a smooth transition to the CDC model.

To assist providers and consumers transition to the new Home Care Packages CDC model of care the Australian Government has funded COTA Australia to:

equip providers to deliver quality consumer directed services in home care; and

provide education, information, and peer support for aged care consumers, so that new and existing consumers can fully benefit from the opportunities available through increased control and flexibility that CDC provides.

COTA Queensland is funded by the Federal Government to deliver Sector Support and Development services and by the Queensland State Government to deliver Information, Education and Training Activities.

COTA Queensland works with key stakeholders to identify barriers and gaps in current service provision for Service recipients, clients and their carers.

COTA Queensland consults with consumers, carers and service providers across Queensland to gather information about their experiences by using interviews, surveys, focus groups and discussions. The information obtained during these consultations is provided to decision makers to assist in improving program design and service delivery.

If you would like to provide us with information about your experiences of the Aged Care Reforms please contact COTA Queensland on 1300 738 348 (Toll free within Queensland) or (07) 3316 2999.